This winemaker started afresh with intriguing new varieties

Some might question the gastronomic judgment of a man famous for his fondness for a meat pie sandwich, but these wines speak for themselves.

The Stoney Rise collection

When Joe Holyman went home to Tasmania 20 years ago he had a good idea of what he wanted to do and a crystal clear idea of what he didn’t. He and his wife Lou bought a vineyard along the Tamar River, excited more by its location than its rooted contents. The cabernet sauvignon vines the previous owners had put such faith in became a large house-warming bonfire. Then work commenced on turning this sheltered site at Gravelly Beach, northwest of Launceston, into one of the finest chardonnay and pinot noir vineyards in the country.

Over time the original vineyard has become the sole source for the Holyman label, producing a tiny amount of exceptional chardonnay and pinot noir, while the Stoney Rise label sources fruit from other sites to allow for fractionally higher volumes and a little varietal divergence from the tight chardonnay and pinot noir focus of the Holyman wines.

Joe and Lou from Stoney Rise

When they bought a little more land next to the original property, the Holymans sourced cuttings of the red variety trousseau in 2014 and now, with almost half a hectare planted, find themselves among the largest growers of the variety in the country. They also source the great Jura white variety savagnin from a vineyard closer to the coast in Spreyton, and make two different wines – one textural, the other even more so – that are among the best examples of the variety ever made in Australia.

When asked what appeals to him about these varieties, Holyman goes with his gut for the answer. “I just love the savouriness of them,” he says. “They work so well with food.” Some might question the gastronomic judgment of a man famous for his fondness for a meat pie sandwich during vintage, but take these wines to the table and they’ll eloquently speak for themselves.

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Stoney Rise wines

STONEY RISE TROUSSEAU 2023

$40

A wine that manages to be both fleet of foot and serious-minded at the same time. Gently reductive up front, the scent of smoking curry leaves sitting over some bright red berries and the deeply golden edges on the crust of a spiced cherry pie. It’s taut and linear, sinewy and chiseled with a faint, rubbed herbal edge detailing the fine-grained tannins. 12% alcohol, 94 points

STONEY RISE ‘TRADITION’ 2022

$60

This is where Holyman leans even further into savagnin’s textural qualities, adding the gently oxidative element of 18 months in old oak. It’s a wine deriving its power from the friction at the point where the nuttiness rubs against the variety’s confident acidity. There’s some flint and wax, citrus pith and coriander seed. A
lip-smacking salinity. 14% alcohol, 96 points

STONEY RISE SAVAGNIN 2024

$42

Left on skins for three days to build talcy texture, then pressed to old oak puncheons for fermentation, with a small percentage fermented in tank with some whole bunches. There’s nashi skin and grapefruit rind, a touch of cheesecloth too. It’s powerful and propulsive with a tangy, margarita-rim salinity etching its edges. 14% alcohol, 93 points